DEKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois University women's tennis head coach Eric Burns announced his first recruiting class, which includes two players from Russia and a talent from Minnesota on Tuesday.
 
"Coach Sayer and I couldn't be happier with our first recruiting class at NIU," Burns said. "All these student-athletes joining our program are not only excellent tennis players on the court but have also excelled in the classroom. They are a great representation of the type of student-athletes we want here at NIU. I am excited about the potential that all three of these ladies bring to the team.
 
"From day one in each of their recruiting processes they each made it clear to me that they are up for the challenge of improving our tennis program and helping us work towards winning a MAC championship. We are excited to get started with them and continue to build off the winning season and the turn around that the team produced this past season."
 
Anastasia Rakita and Diana Lukyanova both hail from Moscow, Russia, while the third Huskie signee, Josefina Trella, comes to DeKalb from Eden Prairie, Minn.
 
Rakita, who achieved a career-high ITF junior ranking of 452, amassed a 29-22 singles record competing in 23 ITF events at the J5 Girls level. She won the 2018 ITF J5 Damour at the Damour Country Club in Lebanon, winning all four matches in straight sets and captured the title with a 6-2, 6-3 win in the finals match. Rakita also advanced to the championship match of the 2018 J5 Beirut at the Golf Club of Lebanon and finished runner-up. She was a three-time doubles champion and a six-time runner up in doubles play in ITF sanctioned events as well.
 
"Nastia was the final piece to our recruiting class as she was the last to sign," Burns said. "I feel like we got a great player and hard worker with her signing. She was highly recommended by those I spoke with. She is very accomplished as a player. I believe she has a great all-around game and her experience and results in ITF events are impressive and should have her well prepared for Division I tennis. We feel she can really add a lot to our team not only this year but also in the future.
 
"On top of her on-court achievements, she is a serious student and has excelled academically, a quality we look for in all our student-athletes. She was excellent to work with throughout the whole process and we are excited to help her reach her goals and improve her game."
 
Rakita also excelled in the classroom winning the All-Russian Olympiad in social studies (2014), Spanish and literature (2015) and was selected to participate in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) tour to Buenos Aires in 2017.
 
"Tennis is one of the most important things in my life and after talking with Coach Burns I realized we shared the same passion for this sport," Rakita said. "He is exactly the person I want to work with because he wants his players to be the best versions of themselves and improve as much as possible. I thought it would be perfect for me since I want to grow as a player.
 
"I was also interested in NIU for pre-law and the business programs as I have always been interested in law. I have traveled a lot around the USA and my favorite city has always been Chicago. With NIU only an hour away, I knew it was a good fit."
 
Lukyanova was a seven-time quarterfinalist at ITF events during her junior career. She was the runner-up at the 2020 J4 Petropavlovsk ITF International Junior Tournament and was part of the doubles team that captured the ITF J5 title at Tula, Russia in 2019. Lukyanova was also a member of the doubles team that finished runner-up at the ITF J5 at Vsevolozhsk, Russia in 2018 and doubles teams that were semifinalists at seven ITF tournaments form 2017-19.
 
"Diana is a great addition to our program," Burns said. "She was the first to commit and I really think she will bring a lot to the team. She is an aggressive attacking player and someone I feel has a lot of upside and room for development. She has extensive ITF junior experience with lots of excellent results, especially in doubles. I think this has prepared her well for Division I tennis.
 
"In talking with her, I just thought she was a good fit for the program and I believe she is someone who wants to be a good student and is serious about tennis. We are really excited to work with her and see where her tennis can go."
 
"NIU has a great reputation for its academic programs, students' involvement and athletics," Lukyanova said. "I am extremely interested in joining Huskie tennis team and further develop my skills under the guidance of coach Burns. At the same time, I chose a subject that I genuinely enjoy and feel motivated to learn more about; business administration."
 
Ranked fifth in doubles in the Minnesota State High School League, Trella served as team captain for the Benilde-St. Margaret's High School girls tennis team her junior and senior years. She is a three-time all-conference honoree and was a part of the Minnesota High School League's No. five doubles team. In addition to playing for the Red Knights, Trella also trained at the Van Der Meer Academy in South Carolina.
 
"I'm really happy to have Joey join the team," Burns said. "I had a chance to see her play at a showcase in Florida back in December and was really impressed with her potential. She came for a visit in February and the team just loved her. I believe she has the opportunity to really improve her game in our program and with hard work could definitely help our program.
 
"I believe she will bring a lot of energy to the team and has already been so engaged with NIU and our program. It is clear that she wants to be a Huskie, and these are the student-athletes we want to build our program with. We are excited to work with her."
 
"I chose NIU because the school had everything I could look for in a school," Trella said. "It has a good meteorology program, not too far from home and it has a team that I can call my second family. I felt comfortable right away. I couldn't be more excited to become a Huskie."
 
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